Review of outcome of radiofrequency cardiac catheter ablations carried out at Madras Medical Mission, India

Context: Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) is a recognised mode of therapy for cardiac arrhythmias. The procedure is carried our regularly at the Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory of Madras Medical Mission, India. Aim: To evaluate the intermediate term follow-up results of radiofrequency catheter ablations. Subjects and Methods: This was a retrospective study carried out in the Cardiac Electrophysiology Department of the Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases, Madras Medical Mission (MMM), India. Records of consecutive cardiac electrophysiologic studies carried out between January and October 2009, together with records of follow-up to March 2014 for those that underwent RFAs were reviewed. In total, the records of 139 cases that had RFAs were analysed. Results: The 139 patients comprised of 65 males and 74 females. The indication for RFA was drug refractory arrhythmias in the vast majority (137 patients). There was a very high success rate (97.1%), following cardiac ablations. Early complications were observed in only 3 (2.2%) patients. Recurrence rate of the indication for RFA was very low (1.43%), and there was no mortality associated with the procedure. Conclusions: The treatment of patients with cardiac arrhythmias using RFA, was associated with a high rate of success, and low rate of complications.